City govt budget approved amid meek protest

LAHORE - The District Council on Wednesday unanimously approved budget of the City District Government, LDA, WASA and TEPA with a collective outlay of Rs 30.73 billion for the fiscal year 2008-09.
District Nazim Mian Amer Mahmood presented the budget, which the house unanimously approved after addition of proposals from the treasury and opposition members. District Naib Nazim Idrees Hanif presided over the budget session.
After the budget speech, the members both from the treasury and opposition benches were asked to give their suggestions.
A handful of opposition members particularly those from the PML-N opposed the budget. The members including Waheed Alam Khan, Tariq Gill, Muhammad Akbar Khan, Muhammad Ilyas, Nazir Khan Sawati, Majid Zahoor opposed the budget claiming that it was not in the favour of the citizens of Lahore. They said that in the budget, funds had been allocated for those areas where the treasury members were residing and that the funds would be spent at such areas where the development had already been made. They strongly criticised the services of WASA claiming that the agency delivers nothing except to utilize the public money for salaries and other office expenditures. They raised slogans against Mian Amer Mahmood saying that he had destroyed the City in the last seven years.
When the house members were asked to vote for the approval of the budget, opposition members walked out from the assembly raising slogans against President Musharraf and Mian Amer.
During budget debate, around 20 members of the house including that of opposition highlighted both the positive and negative aspects of the budget. During the debate, almost 10 proposals were given by the members that include increase of development funds of minority wing members, formation of implementation committee for the budget, regularisation of work charge employees, empowering district assembly members to call the rolls of sanitary workers, establishment of at least three to four waste enclosures in each union council, increase in the number of sanitary workers, extend WASA services in entire Lahore and establishment of flyovers at Saman Abad Morr, Multan Road and Chowk Yatim Khana. The leader of the house accepted all the proposals.
The CDG has allocated Rs 16.72 billion for development and Rs 12.98 billion for non-development expenditures. The CDG has neither imposed any new tax nor it increased the already levied taxes. All the proposals presented by the treasury and opposition members were made part of the budget. The CDG has increased the honorarium for women members from Rs 1500 to Rs 10,000 while it also decided to forward recommendations to the Punjab government to increase the honorarium for the union council nazims and naib nazims. The proposal to increase the development fund of minority members from Rs 4 million to Rs 8 million that is equal to other members was also accepted.
For the development of educational sector, Rs 1.59 billion had been allocated out of which Rs 0.29 billion had been reserved for the ongoing schemes and Rs 1.68 billion for the new schemes that include establishment of new class rooms in 250 government schools, upgradation of schools from primary to middle and middle to higher secondary level.
For the health sector, Rs 0.31 billion had been allocated out of which 0.27 billion are for the new and Rs 40.66 million for the completion of ongoing schemes. A budget of Rs 28 million had been allocated for municipal services and out of which Rs 3 million had been reserved for the ongoing schemes and Rs 25 million for the new ones.
The CDG had allocated Rs 51.6 million for social welfare projects that include the establishment of rehabilitation centre for the beggars, provision of free school uniforms to the special children getting education from CDG schools, purchase of brails for blind students and provision of food to special children. For the civic facilities including metered parking project, installation of close circuit cameras and establishment of public toilets Rs 37.3 million had been allocated. To initiate and complete the projects being run under the Citizen Community Boards, Rs 1.98 billion had allocated while for the agricultural sector Rs 35.3 million had been allocated out of which Rs 29.6 million are for the ongoing schemes and Rs 8.3 million for the new ones. The government under the electrical and mechanical head had allocated Rs 48 million.  Urban Development Wing of LDA would spend Rs 3.92 billion for development works that include the establishment of Lahore Tower, establishment of LDA offices in Johar Town and development facilities in Kachi Abadies.